“Ukrainian Kozaks send a letter to Putin” by Michael Boss.
Last week, local artist Michael Boss unveiled his latest art exhibition, Black Earth/Chornozem, at 226 Main Street Gallery featuring works created in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Boss holds a bachelor of fine art from U of M and a master of fine art from the University of Windsor. He previously worked as the head of education at the Art Gallery of Southwestern Manitoba and head of the WAG Studio before pivoting to a career as a full-time artist in 2014.
With Ukrainian ancestry on his father’s side and a passion for Ukrainian history, Boss’s creative practice has been focused on his heritage and the Russia-Ukraine war in past years, culminating in this exhibition.
The name of the exhibition, Black Earth/Chornozem, is a reference to the dark, fertile soil found in Ukraine and southern Manitoba, perfectly suited for growing wheat. However, in his brochure, Boss writes that Ukraine’s status as Europe’s breadbasket has historically prompted Nazi Germany and Russia to repeatedly invade the nation.
“[This] exhibition focuses on the war, but also on the idea of land as a valuable, [life-giving] quantity […] The basic idea of land as a necessary component of survival, and as something sought after by invading armies, as a way of acquiring resources not available in their homelands is something I have been thinking of for several years,” he explained in an email.
In 2014, Ukraine’s sovereignty was once again compromised with the Russian annexation of Crimea and occupation of Ukraine’s eastern territories, eventually exploding into the invasion of 2022.
“[Making art] is a way of expressing my thoughts and feelings. In this case, my feelings about the unjustifiable invasion of Ukraine. I was, and remain, incensed by these invaders. The artwork expresses anger, deep empathy for those who are directly [affected] and pride in my ancestral connection to these people,” commented Boss.
Black Earth/Chornozem contains seven works, with “Stars in the Night Sky: Monument to 31,000” being the centre piece. This sculpture, composed of 15 black pillars, is a harrowing and painstaking tribute to the 31,000 Ukrainian soldiers who died between 2022 and 2024.
“Each pillar has crosses stapled into it […] I used a manual staple gun to imbed 62,000 staples into these 15 pillars to commemorate the fallen soldiers. It was a commitment I made, and a way of trying to understand that astronomical number by working to acquire a sense of that number on a physical level,” Boss wrote.
“Stars in the Night Sky: Monument to 31,000” by Michael Boss. Mike Thiessen / The Manitoban.
Another artwork on display is “Ukrainian Kozaks send a letter to Putin,” a take on a 19th-century painting of Kozaks writing a taunting letter the Ottoman Sultan. Boss’s rendition features Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukrainian military personnel and Austin Lathlin-Bercier, an Indigenous solider from northern Manitoba who died fighting for Ukraine in 2023.
Boss believes that art moves people into action and urged not to underestimate how impactful our efforts can be.“I truly believe that we send thoughts, ideas, actions out there into the world and they produce effects on others. We can never know how far reaching our actions may go, what effect they will have,” he stated.
Last but not least, he wishes his art will keep Ukraine in our minds and hearts because the fight still not over.
“I hope to remind people that this unjustifiable, horrific war continues, and that Ukrainians need our support. I aim to help keep this ongoing atrocity in the public eye, to drum up support for Ukraine and continue to shine a light on the unabated crimes Russian leaders (and other criminals) have inflicted on the world throughout history,” Boss wrote.
Black Earth/Chornozem is on display at 226 Main Street Gallery from Jan. 2 to 16. Gallery hours are 12 p.m. to 3 p.m., Wednesday to Sunday.
